The practice of recycling household waste has recently been adopted throughout the United States and in many other countries. This revolution in the handling of waste has resulted in the need for a recycling container that is easy to carry, and in one preferred form is stackable, i.e., is constructed in such a way that several of the containers can be nested one inside the other and more specifically, has a carrying handle that will not interfere with good stacking characteristics.
The garbage and recycling industry has made a commitment to provide a co-mingled recycling recovery program in which mixed recyclables are collected. As a result, hundreds of material recovery facilities are now operating or are under construction. In these programs, recyclable waste is collected at the point of generation and is then delivered to a recovery facility where material is separated, processed and end-marketed.
One problem that has not been solved is the inconvenience associated with transporting both recyclable and non-recyclable waste from a residence or other building to a pickup point, e.g., on the street in front of a residence or commercial building, and for enabling both kinds of waste to be picked up simultaneously.
In view of the deficiencies of the prior art, one object of the invention is to provide a new method and container for storing and simultaneously transporting two categories of waste material; namely, recyclable and non-recyclable waste from the home or commercial building to a nearby pickup point, typically to the curb in front of the building where it can be picked up by a truck used for hauling it to a recycling and disposal site.
Another object is to minimize the labor required in handling and carrying recyclable materials that are deposited in such a container.
A further object is to maximize saving of space by providing a recyclable waste container that can be placed very close to the point where recyclable materials are generated, e.g., in a family room, den, laundry, basement or kitchen, e.g., in a cabinet beneath the kitchen sink, together with a way of transporting it along with non-recyclable waste to a pickup point.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a recycling container suited for co-mingled recycling by assisting in the separation of recyclable materials into two categories in a home or commercial building so that the container can be used as a recovery and storage container for recyclable waste either in the home or in a commercial site.
Another object is to find a new method that will allow storing and simultaneously transporting both the recyclable and the non-recyclable waste to a pickup point by means of a container that enables it to be dumped into a truck having separate storage compartments for segregated recyclable and non-recyclable waste.
These and other more detailed and specific objects of the present invention will be better understood by reference to the following figures and detailed description which illustrate by way of example but a few of the various forms of the invention within the scope of the appended claims.